FIG. 1 depicts a schematic diagram of local area network 100 in the prior art, which comprises telecommunication stations 101-1 through 101-K, wherein K is a positive integer, and shared-communications channel 102, interconnected as shown. Stations 101-1 through 101-K enable associated host computers to communicate blocks of data, or “frames,” to each other. Stations 101-1 through 101-K comprise transceivers that enable communications via shared-communications channel 102.
In a mixed network such as local area network 100, some of the stations (e.g., station 101-1, etc.) operate in accordance with the IEEE 802.11 set of protocols, and some of the stations (e.g., station 101-4, etc.) operate in accordance with the Bluetooth set of protocols. Still other stations of local area network 100 operate in accordance with both protocols. The stations comprising transceivers that communicate in accordance with IEEE 802.11 are able to take turns accessing shared-communications channel 102 because they all embody IEEE 802.11 access rules and follow those rules. Similarly, the stations comprising transceivers that communicate in accordance with Bluetooth are able to take turns accessing shared-communications channel 102 because they all embody Bluetooth access rules and follow those rules.
When IEEE 802.11 transceivers and Bluetooth transceivers—situated either in separate stations or within the same station—have to use the same, shared-communications channel (i.e., shared-communications channel 102), the rules for accessing (and sharing) shared-communications channel 102 are not as well defined as for the case where all transceivers use the same protocol. For example, Bluetooth station 101-4 might attempt to transmit when IEEE 802.11 station 101-1 is already transmitting, and the result would most likely be that neither station successfully transmits during that particular attempt. Depending on the contention for shared-communications channel 102, neither the Bluetooth stations nor the IEEE 802.11 stations would operate effectively enough to be of much value to the end user.
Therefore, the need exists for a way to coordinate multiple air interface protocols that are used to access the same, shared-communications channel without some of the disadvantages in the prior art.